June 29, 2016

At short notice, Evi Stamatiou is repeating her show based on the Caryatid from the Acropolis

I first heard of Evi Stamatiou when she performed her show Caryatid Unplugged at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Intrigued by the concept behind the show, I also later conducted an interview with her, which you can read here.

Now, with very short notice (due to copyright issues with the planned play), Caryatid Unplugged is going to be at the Rosemary Branch Theatre in London from 29 June to 1 July.

You can book tickets on the Theatre’s website or find more details about this event on the Facebook Page.

Based originally against the backdrop of the Greek financial crisis and Europeans living in other European countries, the event promises to be particularly topical due to the current chaos surrounding Britain’s referendum to leave the EU.

Today is the anniversary of the parliamentary debate leading to the acquisition of the Parthenon Marbles by the UK government

In the modern history of the Parthenon Marbles, 2016 was the year in which the British Government agreed to acquire them from Lord Elgin in exchange for paying off some of his debts.

June 7th 1816 was a particularly important date, as this was the day of the Parliamentary debate that led to the acquisition of the sculptures. In effect, it was the day the the British Government agreed to the purchase.

Today is also a reminder that requests of the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles are not new. During the original parliamentary debate, Hugh Hammersley MP suggested the amendment to the Act that: “…Great Britain holds these Marbles only in trust till they are demanded by the present, or any future possessors of the city of Athens; and upon such demand, engages without question or negotiation, to restore them, as far as can be effected, to the places from where they were taken, and that they shall be in the mean time carefully preserved in the British Museum…”

June 1, 2016

The one time chairman of Marbles Reunited & long time reunification supporter has died aged 78

I first met Eddie O’Hara in 2001. Since then, I have got to know him well through out common interest of the return of the Parthenon Marbles, and he later chaired the Marbles Reunited Committee of which I am a member. On standing down from Parliament in 2010, he became Chair of the BCRPM,

He was tireless in his support for the issue, regularly raising it in Parliament, as well as speaking at conferences around the world in support of restitution.

During recent years, he had respiratory problems, but he never let this stop his campaigning, despite the fact that it clearly made travel far more difficult thatn it had once been.

Eddie passed away on Saturday 28th May 2016. His wisdom and vigour will be missed by all who knew him.

Eddie O’Hara obituary
Labour MP with a passion for the reunification of the Parthenon marbles
Julia Langdon
Tuesday 31 May 2016 17.22 BST

Eddie O’Hara, the former Labour MP for Knowsley South, who has died aged 78, had a lifelong passion for Greek scholarship and culture and was a fervent enthusiast for the long-running campaign for the reunification of the Parthenon marbles.

An irony of his years of dedication he gave to this cause was his good fortune to be alive to pursue it, as he had been personally identified as a military target when doing national service with the British Army in Cyprus in the late 1950s. A keen sportsman and athlete, he took a daily run outside the army camp, always along the same route in the Cypriot countryside, a routine that was observed by the Eoka terrorists who were fighting to free their island from what was termed “the British yoke” and who mined his path. Had the booby-trap not been discovered in time, the Greek Cypriots would have been denied the subsequent support O’Hara demonstrated as one of the most tireless and articulate advocates of their political interests.
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